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The royal court was rumbling with fear and discontent, much like the levinstorms crackling and bathing the sky in shades of ominous blue. At the center of them all was a young woman, still unuse to the feeling of a kingdom's crown atop her head. Two of the realms greatest knights stood dutifully at her side, trying to offer the comfort of smiles and glances amidst their stoic facade, like flashes of lightning on dark clouds.
The whole scene was observed by a boy of considerably younger years than much of the assembly, dressed in a pristine white lab coat covering a pale blue smock. The IV in his neck pulsed with life-sustaining medicine, a constant reminder of his condition and that death was always a mathematical possibility. How he had fussed and struggled with the treatment as an infant, his parents softly admonishing him not to yank it out whenever it itched and hurt. Both of them were dead now, statistics among the mounting casualties which was the topic of today's meeting.
"Our military forces are being spread thin, Your Highness! We greatly fear what our spies are telling us about what Lindbulm is developing!" a general spoke passionately to a chorus of fearful cries from the assembly. Queen Sphene placed a hand against her chest, as if the gesture would somehow conjure extra strength. However, the boy's instruments could detect her increased heart rate, the firing of her neurons and the rapid signals bouncing around in her slender body. Too young. Too young by far to rule, and yet the people adored her almost unanimously.
"Calyx…" Queen Sphene's soft voice reached the scientist's ears.
He looked up from his electrope tablet where he'd been sketching what the Knights Otis and Zelenia might look like not simply clad in armor, but having their entire bodies made of it (keeping enough of the visage so they were recognizable by people was proving to be vexing). "Yes, my queen?"
"The weapon utilizes electrope, yes? You are the most knowledgeable of us all on the matter. In fact, I daresay you are the brightest mind in this room. Have you had a chance to read our spies' reports?" the monarch inquired.
Her evaluation of his mental capabilities was correct, although why she felt the need to mention it now seemed inconsequential. Of course Calyx had read it and the data was already conclusive: Total Annihilation. The pump hissed again into veins, like a serpent licking at his throat.
"I have," he stated simply and went back to his schematics.
"And…what have you deduced?" their ruler pressed. The child prodigy sighed and placed down the stylus a second time.
"Ah, so there was more to the question, you really should have said so in the first place…" he muttered and it was clear that many in the room did not like his critique. Queen Sphene seemed to take no offense, offering him an inviting smile. Very well. His deductions she would have.
"Lindbulm has clearly put all of its efforts into crafting the figurative sword, we in turn must instead focus on making a shield," he reported monotonously. Zelenia and Otis shared a glance, their own martial styles likely causing them to consider whether such a course of action was wise.
"If we can survive the initial assault and put up our defenses, the rest of the world will use all of its weapons on each other and simply kill themselves in the process. The kingdom of Alexandria will be preserved and begin the act of rebuilding." Calyx continued, the promise of their enemies dead should be enough to convince everyone regarding the validity of his plan.
"Surviving the initial assault…Meaning there will be casualties?" the monarch asked timidly.
"Nigh countless," the boy said clinically and he could see the impact of his words on the young queen. "But it is the only way that I will be able to calculate the aetherical output necessary to maintain our defenses."
"You speak of the people of Alexandria, of Her Highness, like they were nothing more than experiments!" Zelenia's indignant voice rang out across the court and Queen Sphene placed a calming hand atop hers.
"I am inclined to agree with my royal knight, Calyx. I would that all my people, regardless of station or circumstance, have the chance to live, to smile upon a bright new day!" she said emphatically to a chorus of "Hear! Hear!"s and applause. The scientist's eyes narrowed, such resolve was misplaced in this scenario. What she really needed was to be shown reason.
"I would that you continue your research. I do agree that defense should be a priority to stop the further loss of life. Meanwhile, we will send diplomats to Lindbulm. Surely we can find a path that leads to peace…" Queen Sphene said fervently.
Calyx slowly lifted himself up, a struggle that few in this room likely knew, and shuffled his way out of the council chamber like a spectre. Despite being "the brightest mind in the room," people were far more willing to listen to emotion instead. Still, he could see how the people flocked to the queen, more inspiring than her parents or many of the Alexandros line before her. To preserve that memory would be most useful indeed…
He started a new project on his tablet, such a feat was still likely hundreds of years in the future and Queen Sphene's mortal shell would either crumble to dust either or be blasted to ash by levin weaponry. He needed a contingency in place that would allow his work to continue in the interim.
To his surprise, a memory chose to resurface: him coughing in his bed as his mother read him a fable. It had been about a beautiful princess put under a witch's spell, her body protected in a coffin of glass until her true love arrived to awaken her. The stylus leapt back in his hand, twirling between his gloved fingers as he began sketching. The image slowly took shape, a crowned woman, her arms folded as if in slumber, in a box of electrope. The phrase "happily ever after" had always been so trite to him, but maybe there was some merit to it afterall…